By year
Owner complaints about Caterpillar vehicles peaked at 1 in 2004
Owner complaints filed with NHTSA, 2004 to 2026. 2026 runs through October.
Source: NHTSA ODI complaints and recalls files. Complaints are not verified by NHTSA.
Make
Caterpillar
The complete NHTSA record for Caterpillar vehicles: owner complaints, recall campaigns, defect investigations and manufacturer communications, for every model and model year on file.
Most Caterpillar recalls are filed by Caterpillar.
Owner complaints in the last five years17 on file in all, across 11 models
Recall campaigns300 in five years
Severity index28.6Crash, fire, injury or death per 100 complaints
Investigations8364 service bulletins
Components
Equipment draws the most owner complaints about Caterpillar vehicles, 63% of them
Share of all owner complaints on file, by component.
Source: NHTSA ODI.
Models
The 3406E has the most complaints of any Caterpillar model
Every Caterpillar model with complaints or recalls on file, by complaints. Counts are not rates: NHTSA publishes no sales volumes.
| Model | Model years | Complaints | Severity index | Recalls | Investigations |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3406E | 1998 to 1999 | 2 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 |
| CX28 | 2013 | 1 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
| CT660 | 2012 to 2017 | 0 | None | 8 | 0 |
| 3116 | 1988 to 1998 | 0 | None | 7 | 0 |
| 3306B | 1987 to 1990 | 0 | None | 4 | 1 |
| 3406B | 1987 to 1991 | 0 | None | 4 | 0 |
| C10 | 1998 to 1999 | 0 | None | 2 | 0 |
| C12 | 1998 to 1999 | 0 | None | 2 | 0 |
| C15 | 2004 to 2007 | 0 | None | 2 | 2 |
| 3126E | 2003 | 0 | None | 1 | 0 |
| CT681 | 2012 to 2017 | 0 | None | 1 | 0 |
Source: NHTSA ODI. Recall counts add campaigns across model years, so a campaign covering three years counts three times.
Latest recalls
Recent campaigns listing a Caterpillar product
- 17V-641 Oct 11, 2017
Castellated nut on the steer axles may not be properly torqued, allowing the tie rod to loosen
Steering · 4 vehicles - 14V-814 Dec 23, 2014
Affected vehicles may experience brake drag due to an improperly seated diaphragm in the brake chamber
Brakes · 57 vehicles - 14V-068 Feb 20, 2014
In the affected vehicles, the brake S-cam brackets may fracture
Brakes · 181 vehicles - 13V-072 Mar 12, 2013
Certain side marker lamps and/or reflective tape were not applied to these vehicles, which have a length of 30 feet or longer
Lighting · 49 vehicles - 12V-051 Feb 13, 2012
In extremely cold conditions, these bendix relay valves may potentially develop internal leakage
Brakes · 104 vehicles - 11E-051 Dec 2, 2011
Cooling system coolant in this application can degrade, which may cause the engine components to prematurely deteriorate possibly leading to…
Engine and cooling · 3,873 vehicles - 11E-006 Feb 24, 2011
Degradation of a combustion tube weld can result radial heat impingement on the body which may burn through certain bodies used on c15 engines
Engine and cooling · 6,176 vehicles - 10E-025 Jun 23, 2010
#5 and #6 fuel lines may crack at the fastening point to the common fuel rail and cause a fuel leak
Fuel system · 5,920 vehicles - 09E-020 Apr 28, 2009
Variable valve actuation (vva) oil line may wear against the p-clips retaining the oil line, causing an oil leak
Engine and cooling · 148k vehicles - 08E-069 Dec 11, 2008
Aftertreatment regeneration device (ard) may develop a hole and heat and flame may escape during a regeneration of the diesel particular filter
Engine and cooling · 1,512 vehicles
Source: NHTSA ODI recalls file.